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Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Book Review: Hiding In Plain Site by Angela Evans

I'm so excited to introduce you to a very special friend of mine who has just released her first book! Please welcome Angela Evans, the author of a romantic suspense book, Hiding In Plain Sight (Hidden Dangers Book 1). This is a real page turner with plenty of steamy romance scenes and quite a few nail biting moments that involve a creepy family member who stalks the young heroine in the book. Here's a brief synopsis to give you an idea of what Angela's book is all about:

Imagine a 16 year old girl sneaking out of her house one night to see her boyfriend...and just when she is about to return home, there is an explosion on the property that kills both her mother and her grandparents. Although the explosion is ruled as an accidental gas leak, the teenager suspects that her sinister stepfather is responsible for the tragic deaths of her family members. The young woman disappears for ten years and then returns home to confront the memories that are at the root of her unexplained panic attacks. She becomes reacquainted with her former boyfriend, who is now the town sheriff, and discovers that her evil stepfathers is living in town under an assumed identity. The stepfather begins terrorizing the young woman as she and the sheriff search for answers on really happened the night of the explosion that killed her family.

I asked Angela for a few paragraphs out of her book to wet your appetite for what I consider a must-read:

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Book Excerpt #1:

Kierra's chest suddenly felt too tight to take a breath. She

desperately wanted to tell him to stop talking, to run away. She

wished she had never come to town, and that she was anywhere but

here listening to Bryan's calm, soothing voice.

“I can also tell you the thing that's going to be the hardest to

hear. The explosion was ruled an accident. It appears that they only

did a cursory investigation, but there was no reason to suspect foul

play. It was ruled an accidental gas leak. Most importantly, in that

investigation they didn't find a fourth body in the house. The only

victims of that explosion were your grandparents, and your mother.”

Somewhere in the distance a bird chirped and parents cheered

at the Peewee football game. Kierra heard it all as though it were a

million miles away. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think.

Her stepfather was alive somewhere.

No one believed her ten years ago, no one was going to

believe her now, but she knew for certain that somehow he was

responsible for the explosion that killed her family.

And he was still out there somewhere.

Book Excerpt #2:

He
watched as she enjoyed another sip of her coffee. She loved coffee
more than anyone he had ever known. Drinking coffee had never been
something he considered sexy before he shared a morning cup with her.
If she kissed half as sensually as she sipped that coffee, he was in
trouble.

She
glanced up and met his eyes over the rim of her coffee cup and he
even found the pink blush that crept up her face appealing. She was
cupping the mug with both hands, and holding it near her face as if
it were a delicate flower to be carried carefully and inhaled deeply.

“You
make good coffee,” she said into the growing silence.

Maybe
it was a mistake, but he decided it was time to press her and figure
her out.

Without
a word Bryan reached out across his small kitchen and took the mug
from her hands, setting it on the counter behind her. He stepped
forward and instantly saw the change in her eyes when she realized
his intent. She went from eager and sexy to cautious and hiding in
the blink of an eye.

“Don't
do that,” he ordered her.

“What?”
She glanced around desperately looking for a way out of the kitchen,
this conversation, and his arms as they loosely held her captive
against the counter.

“Don't
get all skittish and wary on me. I know you're as attracted to me as
I am to you, and I also know that scares the hell out of you, but you
don't have to be scared of me, or with me. Ever.” He made sure to
hold her gaze as he spoke, he wouldn't let her look away. He wanted
to be sure she understood everything he was saying, and a whole lot
of what he wasn't saying. He was going to have her in his bed, he
could guarantee that. He wanted her under him and begging for
release, and he would have it, no matter what he had to do to get her
there.

He
kept his arms relaxed, and gripped the counter on either side of her
hips. All she had to do was tell him to back off and he would. But he
was going to make her say it if that's what she wanted, because he
knew damn well it wasn't at all what she wanted any more than it was
what he wanted.

Slowly,
keeping his eyes fixed on hers until the last second, he lowered his
head and took her mouth in his. As much as he told himself he knew
what she wanted, he could have shouted in relief when her mouth came
open willingly under his. He fought to keep his hands on the counter
and not bury them in her hair. As much as he hated the color of it,
he would have loved to fill his hands with it and pull her even
closer.

Go
slowly, he reminded himself, but his erection was already straining
against the jeans he had thrown on quickly while she was in the
bathroom. He craved the feeling of her pressed against him, but he
needed to make sure she was ready. If she bolted on him he might
never get her here again.

He
made himself content with the feeling of her tongue sliding against
his and her arms sliding up around his neck, playing with the hair at
the base of his neck. She tasted like the coffee he had made for her,
and she smelled like sleep, woman, and everything sexy. He groaned
and adjusted the kiss slightly so that it deepened and he was
rewarded with a noise that sounded a lot like a purr from Kierra's
throat.

Gathering
up every shred of his self-control, Bryan ended the kiss, resting his
forehead against hers and waiting for her to open her eyes. For a
moment he thought she would hide behind her closed eyelids forever,
but eventually she opened her eyes and met his with an expression
that could only be described as wonder.

“Wow,”
she whispered, causing Bryan to smile.

“Yeah,
you could say that. As much as I'd love to stay here and kiss you all
day long, I need to get to the office and see if any hits came back
on your dad.”

“Stepfather.
He's not my dad. Actually, I don't know who my dad is, but I know who
it isn't, and it isn't him. We're not blood relatives. He was just
another poor choice my mother made in her life.”

The
wall was definitely back around her now. Even though neither of them
had moved, the mention of her stepfather was enough to make her
guarded and withdrawn, which only made him want to pull her close and
kiss her senseless some more just to watch the walls crumble all over
again.

Kierra
pushed back against Bryan's chest, putting some space between them.
That only served to frustrate him further. He knew better than to
push her, but dammit he couldn't help himself.

“I
bring up your dad.” He held up a hand before she could say
anything. “Sorry, stepdad, I know he's not your father, and
suddenly you don't want me touching you? A minute ago you were
practically purring and all I did was kiss you. The mixed signals are
about to make me dizzy here. Can you maybe clue me in as to what's
going on here?”

Angela Evans

Angela Evans has been creating stories in her own imagination since she picked up her first book. In high school she remembers sneaking a copy of a romance novel off her mother’s book case and immediately fell in love with the story, the genre, and the idea of falling in love!

Angela is currently obsessed with the genre of romantic suspense. When she’s not writing new stories you can find her binge watching cop shows looking for inspiration for those creepy villains every suspense story needs.

7 comments:

Marcia, I couldn't possibly adore you more! You are the sweetest, most giving and caring person I know from the blogging world and I appreciate you so much! This post is amazing and I will share it with everyone I know. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!

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Menopausal Mother

Musings on the good, the bad, and the ugly side of midlife mayhem. If you bring me wine and a large jar of Nutella, I'll be your best friend. This is rogue humor at its finest. Welcome to the nuthouse!